Portugal players celebrate after winning the penalty shoot out against Brazil.
Doha, Qatar: At the start of the year, the FIFA U-17 World Cup had been just a distant memory for Portugal. With only three previous appearances, the last of those in 2003, the national team had barely made its presence felt in the tournament. Bino Macaes’ side have been determined to change all that.
The current European champions are now through to the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2025 final after beating Brazil in a penalty shootout in the semi-finals.
“It’s amazing. There are no words for this,” commented captain Rafael Quintas moments after the win. “We gave our best, we worked like our people always do, always giving everything they have. We are representing Portugal in an unbelievable way and we have to keep going until the end.”
Before this campaign, Portugal had only played in the World Cup in 1989 (when it was still U-16), 1995, and 2003. Their previous best had been a third-place finish in their first appearance in the tournament - an achievement which was surpassed on Monday with the victory over Brazil.
Defender Mauro Furtado, named Player of the Match in the semifinal, also celebrated the historic achievement. Although Portugal may lack experience in the U-17 World Cup historically, this team has shown it can rise to the occasion when it matters most. This is a generation that has played together for some time under Macaes.
At the UEFA U-17 European Championship, matches like the comeback win over Germany in the final group stage game and the penalty shootout victory over Italy in the quarter-finals shaped the team’s character. Even against a team that has won the U-17 World Cup four times, and which had already emerged victorious from two penalty shootouts in the tournament, Portugal were able to emerge triumphant.
“It’s an unbelievable feeling. We worked so hard to be here,” remarked Joao Aragao.
With the semifinal now behind them, Portugal now has one last hurdle to overcome. The final against Austria tomorrow at Khalifa International Stadium, could bring the country a first ever U-17 World Cup title. For a nation that waited 22 years to return to the competition, those 90 minutes could go by very quickly. But Portugal will do everything to etch them into history.
“We are European champions, and now we’re in the final of the World Cup. We’re creating something amazing,” said Aragao. (FIFA)
